When your site works for you, not the other way around

And there are places where it doesn’t.

Automated signup confirmations. Subscription renewals. Member onboarding. Scheduled publishing. These don’t need a person clicking “go” every time. In fact, they’re better without one. When the machine just handles it (silently, efficiently, reliably) you get back time. And your users get a smoother experience.

We worked with one organisation that launched an online pledge campaign. Visitors could sign to show their support, and that was that. Or at least, it used to be. We set it up so that signing the pledge triggered a short, friendly email thanking them for taking action. A few days later, they got a reminder to share it. Then a prompt to donate. Then, for those who engaged, a tailored follow-up with articles and stories related to the pledge topic.

No staff were manually chasing signers. No one had to remember who saw what. But the result? More donations. More shares. More people sticking around to learn more.

That’s what good automation does. It fades into the background. No drama. No chaos. Just things working.

The reward of doing it right

It’s tempting to patch things together, especially when you’re juggling limited resources. But a smart setup isn’t about bells and whistles. It’s about setting your team free. You avoid bottlenecks. You reduce mistakes. You make your website something your staff can trust.

That’s an investment that pays for itself, over and over.

Why we use Plone

One of the reasons we work with Plone is because it gets this. Plone’s modular design means you can improve one part of your site without tearing the whole thing down. You can connect it to your CRM, your payment system, your newsletter tools - without duct tape and crossed fingers.

It’s stable, secure, and plays well with others. You build once. You adapt as you grow.

And you don’t need to automate everything to see the benefits.

The little things that help a lot

Plone has a feature called content rules. It’s simple but powerful. You can set it up so that when content is added, moved, published, or tagged, Plone reacts. Maybe it sends a notification. Maybe it files it somewhere useful. Maybe it just logs the change quietly.

It’s like giving your site a few good habits. Ones you don’t have to remind it about.

See it for yourself

Next week, we’re sharing a short video for World Plone Day. We’ll walk you through how content rules work, and how they can quietly—but powerfully—support the people behind your site.

It’s not flashy. But it’s the kind of tool that makes everything else easier.